Me and My Father's Shadow: A Daughter's Quest and Biography of Ted Lewis "The Jazz King"

Dawn Williams
Sunrise House Publishers (2005)
ISBN 0977078310
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (2/07)

You get the feeling that you are taking a step back in time while reading “Me and My Father’s Shadow.” The author, Dawn Williams, does a wonderful job in capturing the atmosphere of the time and in recreating the extraordinary life of “The Jazz King,” Ted Lewis.

The first part of the book is the author Dawn Williams’ biography. She reflects back to the impact that Ted Lewis had on her life. Dawn’s father passed away when she was three years old and left Dawn and her mother penniless. Dawn had to live in an orphanage until her mother could get on her feet. One of her earliest memories was of Ted Lewis coming to visit the children in the orphanage and performing for them. Dawn grew up with a great attachment to him and his music and used to perform his rendition of “Me and My Shadow” when she was a child. When Dawn returned to graduate school after raising her family and after Ted Lewis had passed she was approached by a cousin who told her the truth about her conception. Dawn was actually the daughter of Ted Lewis. Her mother, Ruth and her husband used to spend quite a bit of time with Ted and Adah Lewis. This led to Ruth and Ted having an affair and Ruth getting pregnant. Ted and Adah knew about Dawn and paid Ruth and her husband $10,000 to keep it quiet. This was corroborated by Dawn’s mother and her uncles.

The second part of the book is the first biography about Ted Lewis ever written. The author does an excellent job of telling his story. She captures his early years when he was growing up in Ohio as Theodore Friedman and his showmanship was a constant source of irritation to his parents. He persevered through the early years in show business of constant travel and poor pay to become one of the greatest and highest paid entertainers ever. His talent was portrayed in his creation of the Big Band, radio and movies in a career that spanned over 50 years. Musical greats such as Jimmy Dorsey and Benny Goodman started their careers in the Ted Lewis band.

Ted Lewis left behind a rich legacy to music from which we still benefit today. His daughter, Dawn Williams, does a wonderful job in portraying it in this book “Me and My Father’s Shadow.” I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys biographies, music and the era of Big Bands.

“Me and My Father's Shadow” is both biography and autobiography woven together. It tells the story of Ted Lewis, “The Jazz King”, who was the originator of “The Big Bands,” and considered by many of his contemporaries as the most famous and highest paid bandleader, recording artist, entertainer, and movie/radio/television personality of the twentieth century. This quest and biography is told by his daughter, and only child, whom he never knew. The story is also about famed restaurants such as Reisenwebers and Rectors, vaudeville/burlesque theaters, and nightclub stages that blazed with the names of Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor, Sophie Tucker, Fanny Brice, and Will Rogers, plus hundreds of other stars made famous by the Hammersteins, Shuberts, and Ziegfelds. It is about Tin Pan Alley, The Great White Way, and an infant movie industry destined to grow and mature into even greater celebrity. Ted Lewis is essential to this era's story, and most of the book highlights his remarkable rise to fame, his life-long love affair with Show Business, his fellow entertainers who loved him, and the magic he exuded on and off stage.

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